


Thoughts

by PaisleyWraith



Series: KenMythology Universe [3]
Category: South Park
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-05
Updated: 2018-02-05
Packaged: 2019-03-14 00:42:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,881
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13582392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PaisleyWraith/pseuds/PaisleyWraith
Summary: Invited to his boyfriend’s basketball game, Kenny watches Kyle from afar and starts feeling even farther. Some things won’t change, and unfortunately they live in two wildly different circles.





	Thoughts

**Author's Note:**

> This was my warmup to writing this week. Thought I'd share!

Kenny sat back against the bleachers, grinning as he looked out over the court. He’d never actually been to an entire high school game, much less watch the game from somewhere other than the tallest bleachers out of the way.

It was loud, rowdy, with South Park’s bleachers full mostly due to hatred of the other team, not a love of their own. Kenny thought that summed up the entire town pretty well, not just the school. He normally wouldn’t be here, typically preferring to take extra time to pick up more hours or recover from a long week, but this was important that he attend.

The reason for his attendance was talking to Token on the court, looking determined as Clyde jogged up to speak with the two, the rest of the team close behind. They formed a circle, conversation unable to be overheard even though Kenny was close to them. Kyle was definitely not the shortest or the tallest but certainly the loudest. He always took control when the team was losing, something in his fiery attitude was catching and spread like a lit match on cloth. Kenny bit his lip, smiling.

It had taken him some time to convince Kyle to get back into basketball. He clearly missed it, and he’d only dropped it to try and spend more time with his boyfriend. That was both cute and heart-wrenchingly sweet, but Kenny wasn’t going to be that selfish. Kyle had few things that let him release his bounds of pent up frustration at his overbearing load of schoolwork and overbearing expectations, basketball was a good outlet. Though Kenny wouldn’t mind if _he_ could be the outlet, but whatever.

Poor Kyle hadn’t been handling his stress well. Less than a year from graduating high school, he’d already been named valedictorian, been accepted to college, and was picking out an apartment during upcoming winter break. In Ike’s words, he was a “fucking mess”. So Kenny had given Kyle a great push to get back into the sport again.

The dumbass finally signed back up a week late, only allowed on because his team knew him. As they got older, Token had all the leadership skills but Kyle was more aggressive, more driven. And he was thrilled to be back, even if it cut down on his time with the rest of his group.

Kenny definitely didn’t regret it. First of all, Kyle in a jersey was cute as hell. Secondly, he spent a lot of his time with Kyle playing basketball in the park, which made him a little nostalgic. He wasn’t even out of high school and he was already looking back fondly on his life. Guess he was ancient at heart.

Kyle was sweating, curls stuck to his forehead. He wiped his face on his jersey, which for some reason was terribly attractive to the blond lounging on the bleachers. He could see his expression, fierce and angry and ready to kick ass. That was always a fun Kyle.

Kenny grinned, leaning forward to rest his arms on his knees, as the boys got into position and the game resumed. Kyle seemed to glow, throwing everything into one focused goal. He’d bet the whole audience could see Kyle exactly how he did.

There was something in Kenny that radiated pride at seeing Kyle noticed, hearing people talk about him being that smart, or how much of a smartass he was, or watching him on the court without any distraction, just the fiery direction of one Kyle Broflovski. And, of course, there was something childishly gleeful in him that said _Yep, that’s mine and you can’t have it._

Come on. Not only was Kyle smart, he was arguably the handsomest guy in school. And Kenny was really good at judging these things, he didn’t really have a type so he wasn’t biased or anything.

Craig probably took second place, all dark and tall and thin, a cold attitude hiding marshmallow-soft insides with a geeky smile to make anyone weak if they were lucky enough to witness it. Stan was more cute than anything, black hair clipped short and soft brown eyes under dark lashes, a crooked kind of smile like he wasn’t sure if he wanted to fully smile or not but damn he was cute. Butters was cute too, all soft and short and soft-spoken, with pale blue eyes and a smile that could melt Antarctica. Tweek was…I mean, Kenny would classify him as “adorable” but he wasn’t exactly good-looking in like a traditional kinda way. His hair came to just under his shoulders and often in incredible disarray, his attitude alienated a lot of people; his eyes were adorable though, one eye was half brown while the other was totally the light blue. Token grew up hot, lean and clever enough to stay out of the way of crazy, so well-spoken and polite that he and Kyle had to either hate each other or become good friends, thankfully the latter. Clyde was short and chubby and also cute, full of enthusiasm and heartfelt affection for who he cared for. There were other guys who went to their school Kenny liked the look of, but come on.

Kyle was gorgeous.

Kenny smiled as he watched the game continue, resting his chin in his hands. He ended up with the smartest, handsomest boy in the school. That alone was incredible. Even more so was the fact that _Kyle_ , his friend since childhood was that boy. Like seriously, it was still something that Kenny geeked out over. Karen made fun of him relentlessly. He was lovestruck, just lovestruck for this kid. The surreal part was the fact Kyle was just as into him.

The group ran by, Kenny watching over the heads of three bleachers in front of him. He cheered at the right moments, stood when people decided to…whatever reason they wanted to stand, smiled awkwardly as they chanted dumb shit he didn’t know.

They lost.

Kyle looked pissed, but pursed his lips and clapped hands with the opposing team. Kenny let everyone stand and leave the bleachers. He wasn’t leaving without talking to his boyfriend, after all. Kyle played well, he felt. He crossed his ankle over his knee, waiting.

The team members finally came from the lockers, Kyle with his bag and a sweatshirt is all. Kenny hopped up, jumping down the bleachers rather than walking to the stairs. Kyle glanced up, intense expression melting into something softer. He tilted his head, watching Kenny bounce up to him with a smile.

Kenny moved in for a kiss, but Kyle pushed his chest away.

“I am really sweaty,” He warned, curls still plastered to his skin. “I’m just going to shower at home.”

“Don’t mind,” Kenny said, leaning in again. Kyle let him, keeping the kiss short and sweet.

Despite the warning, Kenny threw his arm over his shoulders, hugging him close as they walked out of the gym.

“I didn’t see Ike or Stan or anyone,” Kenny said cheerfully, “Am I your only fan tonight?”

Kyle snorted, leaning against his taller boyfriend. “Tonight, yeah. Wends and Stan have a date night.”

“And Ike?”

“Is Ike,” Kyle said dryly. “He has better things to do than watch me lose.”

Kenny made a noise of surprise, but Kyle shook his head.

“That’s the text I just got when I told him,” He explained, and Kenny laughed.

“Ah, Ike,” He said cheerfully. “I love that kid.”

“You want another brother, take him,” Kyle teased tiredly. “He’s a brat.”

Kenny smiled, not thinking about Kevin. Not at all. The feeling pierced though, enough that Kyle’s expression changed.

Goddamn it. Kenny immediately grinned again, knowing he had a short window to divert his attention.

“Hey! You wanna go grab a bite?” Kenny offered, over-the-top enthusiasm not compensating enough.

“Hm.” Kyle took a moment to wrap his arm around his waist, the smile disappearing. “Kenny?”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Kenny’s last defense was just to come clean. To be honest, it typically worked better.

Kyle’s eyes flit between Kenny’s, and he tightened his arm.

“I’d love to get some food,” Kyle said finally. “I don’t have school tomorrow, after all. You have work?”

“I really want food,” Kenny said instead. Kyle was bizarrely insistent on him sleeping well. And eating well. Speaking of which. “Oh my _god_ that sandwich today was good.”

“It was just tuna,” Kyle said with a lazy kind of smile, leaving the irritation of the game behind them. “But I’m glad you liked it.”

“It had pickles in it,” Kenny argued. “And a fancy-ass bun. It was definitely top-quality.”

Kyle shook his head at him, blushing lightly. He had some kind of weird desire to feed Kenny as much as fucking possible. Him and Stan. And for some reason, Tweek seemed to bring extra things for him sometimes. It was embarrassing and sweet all at the same time. Kyle took it as a personal task to feed him and hey, Kenny wasn’t complaining about it.

“What about the new burger place that opened?” Kyle mentioned. “I heard it actually didn’t suck.”

“Nice,” Kenny drawled. Though. “Hey, you weren’t going to dinner with the guys, right?”

“I was just going home,” Kyle answered easily. He was still watching Kenny carefully. “I could use something to eat.”

Oh, fuck. “You okay?” He asked, concerned. One thing that made Kenny feel like a piece of shit, he forgot Kyle had diabetes. Everything was mostly fine, unless he forgot to eat regularly. He stopped to look Kyle in the eyes, brushing back his sweaty hair.

“I’m fine, Ken,” Kyle said with a roll of his eyes. “I’m just hungry. He took his phone out of his pocket, checking the time. “Want to see if Karen is up for burgers?”

Kenny dropped a very loud smooch on his cheek.

“I’ll see if she wants to be picked up,” Kyle said with a slow smile. “I’ll see if Ike wants to come along, too. Hard to believe I won’t see him much once May ends.”

Ah, yes. He wasn’t exactly looking forward to the end of the year himself. And Kyle adored his little brother, however he sometimes pretended he was annoyed constantly with him. Kenny leaned against the outside of the gym, cool bricks seeping through his sweatshirt. He watched Kyle text the siblings, crossing his arms.

“Kevin left,” Kenny just outright said. He didn’t want to have to go through whatever plan Kyle had to make him spill it. He would, and Kenny would cave. He always did.

Kyle looked up, eyebrow raised. He said nothing, waiting.

“He said he was tired of dealing with our parents’ shit. Tired of living somewhere dirty and broken and full of drugs and booze. So he left.”

Kyle was still watching, expression uncertain. He was confused. Bless this boy, he was going to be a shitty lawyer with poker faces like this.

“Don’t get me wrong, I don’t…” Kenny shrugged, smiling. “I’m going to fine leaving this behind. But I would never, ever leave Karen. Ever. If she wasn’t leaving, I wouldn’t be, either.”

Kyle lowered his eyes, pale eyelashes obscuring his expression somewhat. He was thinking, choosing his words carefully. Kenny didn’t want him to bother.

“I’m fine, babe,” Kenny nudged him with a beaten-up sneaker. “Focus. Burgers. Call the calvary, let’s grab a table.”

Kyle looked back up, looking like he wanted to pursue the topic. But, as he only seemed to do with Kenny, he let it go and went back to texting. Or so he thought. 

“Not everyone is as noble as you are, Ken,” Kyle said gently.

“Yeah, yeah,” Kenny shrugged, face heating. “Text, Broflovski. I’m hungry.”

Kyle wrinkled his nose. “I did, fuckwit. How long does it take you to type two sentences?”

Don’t. Push. Kenny grit his teeth. “Kyle.”

“Kenny.”

He was so fucking stubborn. Get Kyle on a topic, give him too little information for his liking and you create a goddamn monster.

Kyle reached to yank on one of his sweatshirt strings, to purposely make it uneven because he was a little fucking shit and that’s the kind of thing he did. “Not everyone is selfless as you, Kenny. You’re something different.” 

He hated when Kyle said those kinds of things. They sent shivers up his back, the kind that made Kenny feel about six inches taller, and somehow crawling under a rock. Or like spilling dumb shit he thought like a gushy moron.

“Aw, babe. You’re such a mushy dork.” Kenny teased, leaning back on his old save. Joke it off. It felt…weird.

Kyle looked down at his phone, moving to lean against the building next to Kenny.

He said nothing else, but reached for Kenny’s hand without looking away. Kenny smiled, lacing his fingers with the redhead’s.

Kyle was nosy. He butted in everything he could, and it was really annoying at times. He kept crumbling, folding immediately whenever Kyle pressed. It annoyed him and made him melt at the same time. So maybe he was affection-starved. Sometimes the attention was enjoyed. Just…not about his brother. The fussing over whether he was warm or eating? Sign him the fuck up. He loved being fussed over.

“Ike says yes. No answer from Karen.” Kyle commented, bringing Kenny back out of his thoughts.

“Good enough! Let’s grab him and kidnap Karen,” Kenny tugged Kyle’s hand, dragging the boy towards his car. “Come on. No more downer stuff.”

“You offered the information freely,” Kyle flushed.

“Oh, I meant you losing the game,” Kenny went for the shot, dodging when Kyle reached to smack him. Kenny got out of range, giggling.

“Asshole!” Kyle was grinning, crossing his arms to watch Kenny carefully approach again. “I played okay today. Mistakes were minimal.”

“Oh, I know, sweetheart. You looked good out there.” Kenny accented his words with a smack of Kyle’s ass, having to run out of arm’s reach again. “What? I liked watching you run around the court, hot stuff. You looked ready to punch that guy that elbowed Clyde in the face. He okay?”

“He’s fine.” Kyle was still trying to glare at him, lips twitching. “Don’t sidetrack me.”

“It works sometimes, though,” Kenny argued, grinning.

“Mmhm. Keep it PG for the siblings, please.”

“Oh, always, Ky.”

Kyle was definitely smiling now, more than used to Kenny at this point. Kenny deemed to safe to nuzzle up against him again, the two walking back to the parking lot.

He wouldn’t be able to see Kyle much after this upcoming semester. Not for a whole year. And it bothered him a lot. Not only for just missing him, but Kyle didn’t deal with stress well. Kenny convinced Kyle to join basketball because he noticed the kid was losing a lot of spark. Could tell when Kyle was getting burnt out or overthinking things. What if he couldn’t, and Kyle just… he didn’t know what the outcome would be. Kyle would just be unhappy.

It sucked, because it meant he was having to choose between Kyle and Karen. And he chose his baby sister, and would every time. And Kyle being the loving, understanding person he was, didn’t even think twice about it. But Kenny still worried.

He hugged the shorter boy against him. He’d take every single moment he had. Try to leave Kyle with as much happiness and positivity as he could before they had to part ways. He intended to keep in touch as much as he could, to visit during the summer if Stan agreed to drive. But he worried, regardless.

Kyle was something precious to him. He was one of his oldest friends, someone he had a crush on for years, someone who knew who he was and was comfortable with him. He was loving and smart and courageous. He alone learned about Kenny’s curse and put himself in harm’s way multiple times to try and solve it. Organized their little group that sat together at lunch every day for their senior year. Went above and beyond for every want, need, and whim of Kenny’s that he heard about. He showered the boy in love, and Kenny wished, somehow, that he could give all of it back tenfold.

“Love you, Ky,” He said, still feeling a bit shy on the words. Not that he didn’t like saying them, or that he didn’t mean them, god no. More like it felt wrong to say them. Like he shouldn’t be allowed.

Kyle certainly had no qualms.

“I love you too,” He responded easily, warmly.

Kenny didn’t let go of his hand so Kyle could get in the car. Instead, he tugged him back and reached with his other hand to tip up his chin, and kissed him. He felt he got his love across so much better with actions. He wasn’t the best with words.

He’d try to enjoy every last moment. A lot could happen in a year, after all. He just hoped both he and Kyle would be okay. He felt he didn’t have adequate time to get comfortable yet. Don’t take this away from him.

But fate was never really kind to him to begin with, was she?


End file.
